Reality and Illusion Are Blurred in the Romantic Short “Chase Me Through”

Chase Me Through is a visually stunning short that redefines the “one who got away” romance trope. Directed by Blake Salzman, the film uses nonlinear storytelling to tell the story of a couple who want to be together but can’t. The film uses time skips to show the couple as children as we learn about how they first met. When something tragic happens to one of them in the past, the other says in the present how “it doesn’t have to be this way.” Blurring reality and fantasy, the two start changing history as they dream of a new and happier future for themselves. But the story is still bittersweet as the dream world is unsustainable

Inspired by films like Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind and Tree of Life, Salzman says he wanted to create a film that was “cogent in feeling yet experimental in narrative and format.” Not only does he succeeds, but he creates a film that’s just as visually compelling as the story itself.